Flu Shot Debate

01.12.13

Hospitals Crack Down

Syringes containing flu vaccine. (Eva Hambach/AFP/Getty)

The flu shot debate is heating up—but if you’re a doctor or nurse, are you allowed to take sides? As the flu epidemic plagues the nation, hospitals are reportedly cracking down on staff who refuse to get flu shots. In the past two months alone, 15 nurses and other hospital staffers across four states have been fired for refusing to get one. “Where does it say that I am no longer a patient if I’m a nurse,” argued Carrie Calhoun, a Chicago critical-care nurse who was fired last month. According to federal data, about 63 percent of U.S. health care workers had flu shots in November.